Fluid cooled four-way valve



March 2, 1948. F. M. WOLF FLUID C OOLED FOUR-WAY VALVE Filed Aug. 21,-1944' Patented Mar. 2, 1948 FLUID COOLED FOUR-WAY VALVE Frank M. Wolf,Madison, Wis., assignor to Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation,Madison, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application August 21, 1944,Serial No. 550,463

This invention relates to reversing valves for regenerating and similarfurnaces, and is particularly concerned with the provision of a fourwayvalve for use in a nitric oxide furnace system such, for instance, asthose described in U. S. application Serial No. 464,072, filed October31, 1942, by Frederick G. Cottrell, now Patent 2,422,081, June 10, 1947,and in U. S. application Serial No. 498,896, filed August 16, 1943, byFarrington Daniels and William G. Hendrickson jointly with the presentapplicant, now Patent 2,421,744, June 10, 1947.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the pressure chamber is asubstantially vertical, substantially cylindrical, closed vessel theinside surface of the bottom of which is a horizontal plane surfaceconstituting the aforesaid valve seat. Resting on the valve seat is aninverted trough-like member which is pivotally connected adjacent oneend thereof to the top closure of the vessel through a shaft fixed tothe trough-like member and journaled in said closure, which end overliesone of three ports provided in the bottom. The two remaining ports areequidistant from the first mentioned valve seat port. The trough-likemember also overlies, adjacent its 1 Claim. (Cl. 251-87) seat member 2is of cast metal, and its upper surface 4 is machined to a planesurface. Parts.

- through suitable conduit, with the pressure side opposite end, one ofthe two remaining valve seat ports and couples the two ports sooverlaid. The top closure of the vessel is provided with an inlet portin permanent communication with the pressure side of an air compressoror blower.

The under-surface of the valve seat member is webbed by projectingannular portions of the latter about the ports and about the peripheryof said member, to which projecting annular portions there is attached aplate which co-operates with the valve seat member and its projectingannular portions to define a closed space. Pipe connections, let intosaid plate, are provided for circulating a fluid coolant through saidclosed space. a

The invention will now be described in greater particularity,'withreference to the accompanying drawing, in which 1 Fig. 1 is a plan viewofthe preferred form of the valve according to the present invention,with a portion of the coverplate broken away;

Fig. 2 is a sectionalside elevation of the valve shown in Fig. l, theportions broken away disclosing features of the interior construction ofthe valve;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the valve member of the device, and

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to Fig. 2 butillustrating a modification of the valve construction.

In the drawing, I represents a substantially vertical, substantiallycylindrical, flanged shell to which a valve seat member 2 and a coverplate 3 are bolted to provide a pressure chamber. Valvestantiallygas-tight fit against the plane surface of an air compressor(not shown). Said cover plate '3 is provided also withan opening I forthe admission of a shaft 8 into said pressure chamber. 9 is a bearingmember bolted to a cover plate 3.in alignment with opening 7, in-

which bearing member shaft 8 is rotatably held. I0 is a conventionalstuffing gland making gastight the connection between bearing member 9and shaft 8. Shaft 8 is in axial alignment with the exhaust port of thevalve, which exhaust valve will be described in the following paragraph.

Valve seat member 2 is provided with three spaced openings II, I3 and I5which openings co-operate with bolted-on elbows I2, I4 and I6,respectively, to provide three spaced ports in said valve seat member 2.Port l I, I2 is said exhaust port. Ports I3, I4 and I5, I6 aresubstantially equidistant from exhaust port II, I2. One of the ports,I3, I4 and I 5, I6 is adapted to be connected by suitable conduit to oneend of a nitric oxide furnace (not shown), and the other of said portsis adapted to be connected to the opposite end of such furnace, to forma closed system including said pressure chamber and such furnace,

Resting on the plane surface of valve seat member 2 is an invertedtrough-shaped valve member V. This latter essentially consists of a castmetal seating flange ll of elongated form and of a. size sufficient toextend from port I I, I2 to either port I3, I4 or port I5, IS, theseating bottom surface being machined to make a'subof member 2 and theends being of semi-circular form to conform to said ports, an elongatedendless band I8 of sheet metal riveted to member I1, and a similarlyelongated top closure member I9 welded to band I8, these three elementsco-operating to define a gas-tight inverted" trough, which trough inturn co-operates with the upper plane surface of valve seat member 2 todefine a passageway between either port I3, I4 or port I5, I6 andexhaust port I I, I2. Flanged element 20 is a tubular socket memberbolted onto the top of top closure member I9 adjacent one end of thelatter and axially aligned with exhaust port I I, I2. The tubular socketis adapted to receive the lower end of shaft 8, and the upper portion ofthe tubular socket is provided with a slot 2| for the reception of a pinor offstanding projection 22 carried on shaft 8 adja- 3 cent the lowerend of the latter. When shaft 8 is in place in tubular socket 20 withpin 22 engaged in slot 2|, the valve member V is pivotally connected tothe pressure chamber, with one end over exhaust port ii, 12, and may beso slid or rotated--by suitable rotation of shaft 8 in bear ing member9-about this pivotal connection as.

l6 (as shown in the to overlie either port l5, drawing) or port 13, 1 1I The lower or under surface of valve seat mem-- ber 2 is webbed byreason of the projecting annular portions of the casting about openingsll, l3 and I and the outer projecting annulus 23. A metal plate 2 3,provided with three apertures coinciding with the three openings ll, I3and I5, is bolted to these webbing elements to co-operate with thelatter to provide an enclosed space at the bottom of the valve seatmember 2. Plate 24 is provided also with two smaller threaded openings25 and 26, into which are received pipe connections 21 and 28 for theintroduction of fluid coolant (e. g., cooling water) into said enclosedspace, and with a third smaller threaded opening 29, into which isreceived valved pipe connection 38 for the removal of fluid coolant fromsaid space. Coolant admitted into the enclosed space beneath valve seatmember 2 fills the space and contacts the under surface of member 2; therate of flow of coolant through the space may be adjusted by the settingof the inlet and outlet valves.

For lubricating the seating surface of valve member V I may and preferto provide a groove 3! in the bottom surface of seating flange l7 and agrease channel 32 in valve seat member 2, communicating at its inner'endwith groove 3|, and to attach a pressure grease fitting 33 at the outerend of channel 32. By these cooperating means lubricating grease may beforced into and about groove 3i and between the seating surface offlange l1 and the upper surface of member 2.

As shown in Fig. 4, I may modify flange H to provide adjacent thepivoted end of the latter a depending annular collar 34 of such size andconfiguration as to fit loosely within opening ll. Opening H and collar34 are in axial alignment with shaft 8. Collar 34 serves to stabilizethe functioning of member V in pivoting over opening I I, and also torelieve strain on shaft 8, in the case where member V is very large.

In use, valve member V tends to remain in gas-tight co-operation withthe upper surface of valve seat member 2 not only by reason of itsweight but also by reasonbf the gas pressure obtaining in thesurrounding portions of the pressure chamber, which gas pressure'isalways in excess of the gas pressure obtaining within the invertedtroughlike valve member V. When valve member V is in the position shownin the drawing, air under pressure enters the pressure chamber throughopening 5 from a source Of compressed air, flows out of thepressurechamber and to the furnace through port l3, H3, returns to thepressure chamber from the furnace (after being thermally treated for theproduction of nitric oxide therein) by way of port I5, I6 into thepassageway provided by valve member V, and is exhausted from the valvethrough exhaust port ll, l2, Upon rotation of shaft 8, which operationcan be efiected either manually or mechanically, the nonpivoted end ofvalve member V'is' caused to overlie port [3, l4 whereupon the course ofthe air is modified to the extent that the air passes-to the furnace byway of port l5,

i6 and returnsto the interior of valve member V by way of port l3, M.

.I claim:

The reversing valve mechanism comprising, in combination, a pressurechamber, defined by a housing provided with an inlet port, and acooperating substantially horizontal plane surfaced valve seat memberprovided with three ports opening frombelow, one of said valve seatports being an exhaust port equidistant from the other two valve seatports; within said chamber and spaced from said housing a substantiallyhorizontally oscill-atable valve member supported upon said valve seatand pivotally connected adjacent one end thereof to a part of saidpressure chamber to provide in co-operation with said valve seat apassageway which is in permanent communication with said exhaust portand which is adapted to be in communication with either one of the tworemaining valve seat ports; and means for oscillating said valve memberabout its pivot and in contact with said valve seat to bring said valvemember into communication with first one and then the other of the tworemaining valve seat ports and thereby to couple first one and then theother of the latter with said exhaust port, additionally characterizedin that the under-surface of the valve seat member is webbed byprojecting annular portions of said member about said ports and aboutthe periphery of the member, in that there is attached to saidprojecting annular portions a plate member cooperating with said valveseat member and its projecting annular portions to define a closedspace, and in that there are provided means for circulating a fluidcoolant through said closed space.

FRANK M. WOLF.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Smith May 3, 1932

